Arms of a Thief
by Miss Elle Winchester
Summary: Neal's boyfriend Jesse is writing a book; a book that happens to be about a thief. With Neal working for the FBI, Agent Burke constantly shadowing them, and a missing jade statue Jesse's story gets way out of hand. Neal/OMC, Slash
1. Chapter 1

_Plot: Neal's boyfriend Jesse is writing a book; a book that happens to be about a thief. With Neal working for the FBI, Agent Burke constantly shadowing them, and a missing jade statue Jesse's story gets way out of hand. Neal/OMC, Slash _

_A/N: I have way too many unfinished stories going but I couldn't help myself. It's my first White Collar story! Yeah! I'm in love with Neal, he's so amazing. Matt Bomer is one attractive fella; his eyes are to die for. Jesse is a figment of my imagination and basically looks like James Maslow in my head. Please don't steal my story or leave hurtful flames. It's just not nice. But for those of you who love a good mystery, fun high-jinks, and boy-love this is the story for you!_

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**Chapter One: The Fine Red Line**

_This would be easy. Just get the painting and get out. Parties were always the best venues for heists. They were always overcrowded, with no one knowing who was invited or just snuck in. Not to mention crawling with expensive booze and hot girls; at least the one's he went to. Neal Caffrey adjusted his ash grey fedora so it sat jauntily on his head. He'd really have to pour on the charm if he wanted to make it out alive. He would have to tread lightly when robbing mafia royalty._

_After slipping in with a group of unsuspecting models, who thought he was a Finnish fashion designer, he began to scope out the lavish New York penthouse. It was beautiful, as penthouses often are, with a large rooftop deck and a killer view of the city. Neal took in the magnificent vision before snagging himself a flute of champagne and began to explore the penthouse unassumingly. Rule one when robbing scary mobsters with guns, make yourself scarce. He was after an authentic Anjali painting. It would be quite a steal (no pun intended) for any buyer who wanted to bid on it; the calligraphy alone was worth its weight in gold. But Neal didn't want it just for profit. He wanted the prestige, the bragging rights. It took guts to rob a bank but it took real balls to lift a painting from the artist's home, especially when said artist was also involved in criminal affairs. _

_Stepping lightly, his black D&G dress shoes barely making a sound on the carpeted stairs, Neal made his way into the heart of the penthouse. He was surprised no one had stopped him yet, even to ask what he was doing. This part of the penthouse was eerily quiet. Only the faint echo of Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" pumped through the walls from downstairs. The trick, Neal had learned, was to act like you belonged- _

"I don't think like that." Neal Caffrey said, leaning over his boyfriend's chair to get a look at his laptop screen.

Jesse Rivenbark gave his boyfriend an incredulous look with his hazel eyes, "Yes you do. After five years of knowing you I know _exactly _how you think."

"I think I would know how my own brain works."

"Yes but you're not being objective."

Neal grinned cheekily at him, "Who says this has to be an objective piece?" he gave Jesse a lingering kiss on the neck; "After all, you _are _sleeping with the subject of your novel."

He nodded, knowing that Neal is absolutely right, "It's more of a memoir now."

Neal chuckled and stepped back to give his lover some space. He watched him from where he was leaning against the wall, a light gleam in his blue eyes. Everything Jesse did drove him crazy. Sometimes he didn't think Jesse knew just how _much _he loved him. The way he laughed at dry, often tasteless, jokes and kept the swooped bangs of his light-brown hair just above his eyes. Neal often wondered what he'd done in a previous life to deserve Jesse. Jesse was twenty-four, making it an eight year difference between himself and Neal. However, Jesse felt like _he _was the older one in the relationship. Neal was somewhat of a free-spirit.

Jesse closed his iMac gently and sighed. He was never going to get this novel finished. He'd been working on it since he'd been dating Neal but had only recently revealed it to him. Neal loved the idea of being immortalized in text and encouraged him to write more. Jesse happily obliged, typing away whenever an idea struck him, but his creativity was beginning to slow.

Eventually he knew it would clot.

"Baby I gotta go." Neal said, he was sporting a smile but Jesse could see the sadness in his eyes.

Jesse pushed himself away from his desk, "So what do the suits need you for now?"

Neal chuckled, "They're not as bad as you think."

"I don't like suits that put you in danger." Jesse said as he stood and stretched, "Plus they keep that thing on you." He pointed to Neal's tracking anklet, "It has to be a violation of your constitutional rights or something."

"You sound like Mozzie."

Jesse feigned disgust, "I thought you knew me."

Neal grabbed Jesse by his slender wrist and pulled him closer so they were standing nose to nose. The ex-thief nuzzled his boyfriend's neck softly.

"I do." He said giving Jesse's tanned neck a small bite, causing him to emit a cute yelp. Neal laughed for a second time, "Do that again."

"Make me?" Jesse teased.

"Oh I will."

Neal was about to make good on his threat before a knock at the door interrupted him. Jesse sighed,

"Another moment ruined."

Neal was already walking towards the door, "Just a minor setback."

He swung open the door to find FBI Agent Peter Burke scowling at him. Peter and Neal had a…special relationship. Basically Neal was a private consultant to the FBI, cutting his jail sentence short (much to Jesse's delight) but he was always at the bureau's beck and call. Neal's need for adventure and casual disregard for the rules often got him in trouble.

Peter snapped his phone shut, "Didn't you get my message?"

"What message?" Neal said, turning away to make a face at Jesse.

"I learned to text on this damn thing because of you Caffrey." Peter growled.

"I just told you to step into the 21st century."

Jesse cleared his throat, "Hi Peter, I'm fine in case you were wondering."

"Yeah hi Jesse." Peter said.

Peter had a soft spot for the youth. He started to grow on him when he promised to give Peter a part in his book. There was something about Jesse that drew people in like flies to a carnivorous plant.

Peter looked at his watch, "Neal we've gotta go."

Neal was already donning his coat and signature fedora. He gave Jesse a peck on the cheek, "See you later baby."

"Yeah," Jesse said as he watched them leave, "see you later."

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_I hope you didn't totally hate that. And I hope you like Jesse! _


	2. Chapter 2

_So sorry this took so long to update. I was having major writer's block but I'm good now. I think b/c I watched like 7 episodes of White Collar back-to-back. Hope you like this, I worked super hard. _

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Chapter Two: Serendipity 

If there was one person on the planet who could possibly rival Neal in a contest of codex's and intellect it was Jesse. He had graduated from Colombia University with a bachelors in forensic anthropology and knew almost everything there was to know about the human anatomy and how to break it. He had an eye for art but wasn't as accomplished with painting as his boyfriend. At times Neal compared them to two sides of the same coin. When Neal was still into thievery sometimes Jesse wasn't far behind. There were two things in the world that made Neal happy, stealing things and Jesse. Together they were like the perfect drug.

When they'd first met, Jesse was still in college wrist deep in indentifying the bones of World War I soldiers. Neal was trying to get to the William Orpen oil painting from the archives of the University. It was serendipity that the two met. Jesse and Neal would never stop thanking this serendipity.

**5 years ago Colombia University, New York**

"_Do you mind doing the skeletal reconstruction, Jesse?" Dr. Jackson asked, tipping her large glasses in her assistant's direction. _

_Jesse's face lit up with delight. It would be his first solo reconstruction and he was so excited he could barely contain himself. _

"_Uh no! Yeah, I'd love to." Jesse said with mirth. _

_Dr. Jackson smiled at her finest student, "Remember to catalog all of your findings. These boys deserve all the respect a person can get." She motioned to the plastic bins of bones. _

_Jesse nodded, "Of course Dr. Jackson."_

_An hour into laying out the bones Jesse got the feeling he was being watched. He glanced over his shoulder, holding the radial bone in his hand closer than needed. Jesse wasn't an adventurous or overtly brave person but he did know how to defend himself. He took a deep breath. _

"_It's just the wind." He said, placing the bone on the examination table. _

_It was weird. The building the lab was in was supposed to be a secure location. It was on the lower levels of the University and only authorized personnel, meaning students and professors, could enter without drawing suspicion. There wasn't anything Jesse cared about more than his education, that and his safety. And the safety of the bones he was working with. Jesse wasn't as much of a shut in as most people thought. His parents lived in Seattle and owned a coffee shop so he didn't get to see them much but they were proud of their only son. Jesse always wanted to help people. That was his calling. Identifying remains somehow brought him closer to people. He also fancied being a novelist but that was only a dream. A dream that wouldn't make any money. He'd either be a forensic anthropologist or a cop. Either way he'd get to help out. _

_A shadow in the corner of his eye brought Jesse into the present. There was a figure creeping upstairs in the antiquities department. He could see them on the balcony. _

"_We're being robbed!" Jesse said, accidentally dropping the bone, "Protect the bones…protect the bones!"_

_Jesse scooped the bones back into the bins and prayed whoever it was would just go away. He was alone in a gigantic building with a possibly unsavory character who might want to murder him. He was going to die holding an ulna without a degree. This was just perfect. Jesse was practically hyperventilating but he wasn't going to let this thief get the best of him or the University. _

"_Okay…" Jesse took a deep breath and shed his lab-coat, revealing the navy-blue V-neck underneath. He wasn't going to let this happen. Jesse ran his hand under the table and fingered the 'panic button'. He waited for a few minutes, gauging what was happening, and tapped the button. It was only for emergencies like chemical spills. _

"_It's the wind…it's a shadow…" Jesse said. _

_Shaking away his nerves Jesse categorized the bones as quickly as he could. He locked them away in the storage facility and practically ran out of the lab. He barely had a chance to pull on his coat when he slipped on a patch of ice and slammed right into someone. They both fell onto the cold ground, Jesse's papers scattered in the process. _

"_Oh God I'm sorry." Jesse gasped, dropping to his knees to get the papers. When he looked up he was met by a pair of sparkling blue eyes. Unconsciously, Jesse drew in a sharp breath. _

"_No my fault." The stranger said, handing Jesse some of his work. _

_Jesse chuckled, "Really, it's all me. Black ice doesn't help the gravitationally challenged like myself."_

_He smiled, showing off his perfect white teeth, "What's your name?"_

"_Um Jesse." The young man stammered, blushing._

_The stranger extended his hand, "I'm Neal." _

At the time Jesse had no idea he was getting involved with an international thief who was the one who'd just broken into the antiquities department. By the time Neal told him the truth Jesse was too in love with him to care about what he'd done or what he planned to do. He was a romantic. Being with Neal was an adventure. Once he finished school he moved in with Neal; moving in being a loose term since Neal traveled a lot. Jesse didn't mind. He got t try out his language skill and sometimes his eye for history came in handy.

Jesse was paying more attention to Draco, the new kitten he'd persuaded Neal to let him have, than to the sound of knocking at the door. He'd named the cat Draco because of its glowing green eyes. They reminded him of a dragon's emerald scales. Of course Neal then proceeded to tell him that dragons weren't real but that he'd get the cat anyway. Little Draco was a ball of black fluff with a crooked tail from being clipped by a taxi downtown. Jesse loved him all the same. He was his constant companion when Neal was out.

The knocking persisted and Jesse finally looked up. He placed Draco on the shelf above the bed. The kitten yawned and settled himself next to a bookend in a tiny ball. Jesse smiled, running his fingers through his hair. He walked over to the door and looked through the peep hole. Neal was standing there smiling at him. Jesse rolled his eyes but opened the door.

"Forget your key…again?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe.

Neal laughed a little, "Maybe. But I'm bearing gifts, does that make it better?"

"Depends," Jesse said pursing his lips, "will it be something to get you into my good graces?"

Neal pulled his hands from behind his back to reveal the bottle of wine in one hand and a rose in the other. Jesse saw there was something tied to the stem of the rose. Upon further inspection he saw it was a cartridge of ink for the printer. He'd been using it all up recently. Jesse accepted the rose and the ink with a grin.

"And what prompted this?" Jesse asked, walking over to the sofa.

Neal shut the door, "I like giving you things." He went into the kitchen to fetch two wine glasses and then joined Jesse on the couch. Jesse leaned his head in the crook of Neal's neck; automatically, Neal's arm wound around his boyfriend's shoulders.

"So did you bust any bad guys today?" Jesse asked.

Neal sighed, "A few. I got into a fight today though and I won. Thank you very much."

"You liar." Jesse said with a smile, "You're too sweet to throw any punches."

"Yes, yes I am." Neal said, "It wasn't really a street fight or anything…it was more of a physical altercation."

"Physical altercation?" Jesse said, cocking his eyebrow, "With who?"

Neal rolled up the sleeve of his light lavender dress shirt to reveal a small bruise. Jesse's eyes widened and he hugged Neal a little closer.

"I don't like people hurting you."

"It was a door." Neal chuckled.

Jesse looked perplexed, "Is that a criminal's name? Door?"

"No Jess, I walked into a revolving door."

Jesse glared at him, "You made me feel sorry for you!" he poked Neal in the side, "So the door attacked you and gave you that bruise?"

"You should see the door." Neal joked.

Jesse kissed Neal's cheek, "Want a massage? Y'know since you had _such _a hard day."

Neal perked up at the sound of that. Jesse's massages were the stuff of legend. Since he knew of every pressure point in the human body he was incredible at giving massages. There was a certain spot that he hit on Neal's lower back that made him make the strangest sound; it was a cross between a whimper and a moan.

"I have an idea." Jesse said as he kneaded Neal's tense shoulders.

"Hmmm." Neal groaned, enjoying all the attention.

Jesse stuck his tongue out in a frustrated expression, "My novel isn't coming along like I thought and I'm having some serious writer's block…so I was wondering if I could go on a ride along with you and Peter tomorrow."

Neal hissed when Jesse hit an extra sensitive spot, "It's dangerous Jess and ohmyGod right there…"

Jesse smiled and obliged, "I can defend myself Neal and I think it would be fun. Don't be grumpy."

"I'm not!" Neal said, "I just…don't think Peter will agree."

Jesse grinned impishly, "I'm sure we can convince him otherwise."

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_That's it for now. Next chapter will be more interesting. I really hope you guys think Jesse is a good character, it took me forever to make him! Please review, I love it more than Neal loves Jesse... and pretty paintings. _


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